


The N//A Game

by squaredElephant



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Class Trials are still a thing though!, Gen, No Monokuma - Freeform, Not set in the Danganronpa universe, Original Character Killing Game, Tears, a lot of blood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-08-23 18:22:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20247274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/squaredElephant/pseuds/squaredElephant
Summary: A group of fourteen high school graduates are trapped in a secluded mountain estate, forced by a psychopathic AI to kill each other to escape.





	1. [0] The Harmonic Diversity Summit

The screen flickers on in the darkness, an explosion of static pulsing and pounding at the forefront like stardust bursting forth from the vast emptiness of space. A random assortment of pixels, ricocheting around like a noisy, chaotic pachinko machine, the afterbirth of the Big Bang. 

Slowly, a distorted voice begins to scratch out from the television.

“...--llo…?”

At first drowned out by the frequency, the voice begins to speak up as a repetitive tapping noise joins it.

“...--llo? Hell_ ooo? _”

More tapping. Eventually, the fuzziness of the static begins to recede as an image can be clearly seen on the television: a woman, her finger repeatedly tapping against the screen. 

“Hello--oh! There we are, hehe!” The woman grins, with a slightly bashful expression on her face. “Didn’t mean to dirty up your lens, dearie, but the picture’s back!”

She takes a step back, giggling. Just from a glance, anybody could see that she was stunning: bright, vibrant eyes, kinky hair tied up in two _gigantic_ buns, a gorgeous red dress, and, something that didn’t quite seem to fit. A rather chubby tabby cat lay across her shoulders, lazily mewing at the sudden movement of the woman.

“Oh, _ hush _, Pepper,” The woman playfully booped the cat on the nose. “We’ve got a big day today, so look pretty!”

The cat doesn’t respond. It seems as though it has already fallen asleep.

The woman chuckles, before looking at the screen, grabbing a microphone from slightly off-camera. “Alright, lovelies. We’ve got a show to put on, so on my mark...five, four, three, two…!~"  
  
She immediately straightens up, bringing the microphone to her lips.

“Hello and welcome, beauties of the world, to a very _ special _ episode of **[The College Cradle]**, with your favorite host, Baby! That’s me!"  
  
She winks at the camera.

“And your favorite co-host, our beautiful and, apparently, rather sleepy, Pepper!”  
  
The cat on Baby’s shoulders begins to drool on her shoulder.

“_ Charming. _ ” Baby rolls her eyes, snickering. “Now then, we’re here today at a _ luxury _ winter estate, high atop the beautiful **[Tayne Mountain]** in Vermont! I guess you could call it a...Moun _ tayne _?”

Baby clicks her tongue, looking at somebody off-camera. “Okay, fine, I’ll stay on-script.” She clears her throat. “High school graduates from all over the United States are assembling here at this mountain, but these aren’t just regular graduates! They’re all top of their class, insanely gifted youngsters hand-picked to take part in the **[Harmonic Diversity Summit]** being held here, and it just so happens that your favorite Baby is here, getting the scoop from all of them! We’re talking life stories, problems in the school system, and new friendships over the course of the month that they will spend here!”

She stares into the camera, a bright, beaming smile on her face, her perfect teeth almost shimmering like pearls. “So, what’re we waiting for? Let’s go interview some super cool kids!”

...

The image fades out for a moment, before it comes back, this time, a different face visible. It is a girl, with flaming red hair colored golden at the tips of her long twin-ponytails. She wears something of a sneer on her face.

“School’s, _ whatever _ , and all, I aced all my classes, but sometimes I’m like, yo, what _ good _ is all this stuff? Does it really matter if I know who Martin Van Buren is?” The girl tilts her head, annoyance clear in her eyes. “Everything that _ matters _ , like taxes, and insurance, and _ makeup _ , I had to learn online. The _ internet _ is the only teacher that matters to kids nowadays.”  
  
“But,” Baby’s voice sounds from off-screen. “Don’t you think that the parents have a responsibility to teach their children life-skills?”

The girl scoffs. “Yeah. Maybe if you _ got _ parents.”

…

The image changes to another kid being interviewed, this time, a boy with tanned skin and dark, wild hair. Freckles line his face, and his eyes widen slightly in a youthful energy as he speaks.

“_Hablando en Inglés es difícil. _” He says in Spanish, before laughing and switching over. “What I mean is, class gets hard. Writing is fine, but when I am listening to a man talk on and on, or when I am wanting to talk to him, everything blends. Like a word smoothie.” 

He leans back in his seat, arms folded behind him to act as a pillow for his head. 

“I have had to work twice as hard as any fluent speaker to get where I am.” He laughs again, leaning forward and gesturing around him. “And look where I am!”

…

The image changes once more, to another young man. He sits up straight, his hair neatly combed except for a little tuft at the top of his head sticking out. He smiles, sitting up straight and dusting off his green button-up shirt.

“Yeah, I’m..._ really _ excited to be here.” The boy says, his excitement obvious from the modulating tone of his voice. He almost seems like a kid in a candy store, with the way he keeps glancing about the room, excited by everything. “I mean, who wouldn’t be? Being here at this summit...it means all of my hard work paid off!”

“And hard work it was!” Baby speaks from off-camera, admiration evident from her voice. “You made international news, Clive. Everybody really ate up your story!”

The boy’s face flushes as he chuckles, clearly embarrassed. “The feedback I got was really nice.”

“Mm.” Baby seems to be rustling some papers off-screen. “Raised by your big sister in poverty, homelessness, working so many different jobs just to have a place to stay...it really seems like a dream come true that you’ve managed to earn your way here!”

“It’s all ‘cuz of Jordan.” Clive smiles. “And Nicky, my younger brother. Everything that I do’s for them. It’s like there was a voice in my head screaming...”if you want to give your sis and bro a good life, you gotta get read!” So I got read, and I _ got read _ , until it’d be insane _ not _ to give me a ton of scholarships!” 

“How touching!~” Baby sniffs. “How do Jordan and Nicholas feel about this?"  
  
“They’re...heh, they’re so happy for me.” Clive wipes the corner of his eye. “I don’t spend as much time with them as I want to anymore, I’ve gotta focus on studying, but...I know that I’ve done something important. I _know_ that by securing my own future, I’ll secure theirs. They’re countin’ on me, so I gotta do my best!”

“A beautiful sentiment.” Baby says, her voice strained with tears, genuine or otherwise. “Now then, I think we’re about done here! But before we leave, Clive, darling…”

Clive looks up.

“Do you have any last words?”

…

The screen lets out a shrill final gasp, before fading into blackness from whence it came.

…

..

.

**=[The N//A Game]=**

**0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13**


	2. [0] Number Zero

_ Everything’s spinning… _

_ Even though my eyes are closed, everything’s spinning around, like...some kinda sensory horse spinny thingy. _

_ ...What are those things called, again? _

_ Nevermind that. Focus, and open your eyes, Clive! _

“Ugh…” Clive Dudley awakens in a room, a massive headache overtaking all other feelings in his body, his skull screaming out as if it has been struck with a jackhammer. His brain feels like fractals, an expensive piece of china shattered into a million pieces.

“Where…” Clive’s voice trails off as he sits up in the bed and realizes that nobody is in this room with him. His eyes dart around, foggy until he wipes them with his hands and takes a look at the unfamiliar room.

Clive sits upright in a rather cramped and uncomfortable bed low to the floor, not leaving any space for anything underneath. The bed is tucked against the wall, the **[south]** side of the room, it seems like. At either end of the bed are little nightstands with drawers on them.

In the middle of the room is a seven-sided table, a...heptagon? That was the one, right? Yeah, let’s go with heptagon. The table is covered by notepads, pens and pencils, and--

Clive’s eyes widen at the picture frame at the center table, leaping out of bed to look at it.

Three people are in the photo, shoulder-to-shoulder, all looking happy. The tallest is a woman, probably in her mid-twenties, with auburn hair tied up in a bun, wearing a leather jacket. The youngest is around the age of fourteen, looking almost like a younger copy of the person in the middle, who was--

“Me.” Clive notes to himself. “And Jordan, and Nicky…”

_ This is a photo that I have! These notepads… _

He skims through one of them.

_ Yep, sketches, little poems...this is all my stuff! _

Clive put the notepad down, and searches both night-stands. Although the first one, to the **[west]** had nothing besides an old-school telephone atop of it which, of course, didn’t work, the one in the **[east]**...

_ A crumpled-up piece of paper? _

Clive takes out the paper, looking at it for a moment, before uncrumpling it.

**=======================================================**

**CLIVE DUDLEY - ** **[0]**

**To exit your room for the first time, all you have to do is place your [RIGHT HAND] PALM-DOWN inside of the [HAND SCANNER] to the right of your door.**

**You will be able to exit at any time after that. However, to enter again from the outside, you will need to place your [RIGHT HAND] PALM-DOWN inside of the [HAND SCANNER] outside of the door. **

**Welcome to your New//Academic Life.**

**=======================================================**

Clive stares blankly at the note.

_ What. _

Okay, okay...there was a lot to pack in. The note’s clearly intended for Clive, it has his _ name _ and everything. He doesn’t quite understand what the zero’s about. And the instructions…

Clive looks up at the **[north]** side of his room.

A closet door is on the left side, and to the right, a heavy iron metal door, like the kind you’d see in high-tech governments facilities. It _ really _ contrasted with the wooden, kind of dilapidated feel of the room as a whole. To the right of the metal door is some kind of device, like a key-card scanner.

“That’s to...open my door?” Clive mumbles to himself. “Does it know my handprints? Why not just use a key…? This place is…”

He whistles, not understanding what’s going on at all. He glances to his left and right, at the two walls that he hasn’t looked at yet. To his left, along the **[west]** wall, appears to be a desk, with pieces of paper neatly in a stack next to a ballpoint pen. Above the desk is a framed picture, completely black except for a solid-red **0**.

_ That number again, _ Clive frowns to himself. _ The zero… _

To his right, a large screen seems to be attached to the wall. Clive walks over and presses the on button located in the bottom right corner.

“Ghh!” Clive covers his ears as the incredibly loud static pierces through his senses, striking any and everything in his path. Clive quickly turns the screen off. “Jeez…”

Recovering from his sonic assault, Clive walks over to the closet door next, opening it. “If I’m right...yep.”

All of the clothes in the closet belong to Clive.

“Is this...the **[Anderson Estate]** where the summit's supposed to be?” Clive asks nobody in particular. That had to be it: the air was cold, the wooden floorboards and walls made it seem like he was in some sort of _ cabin _, all of his own stuff was here as if he’d been living in it, and the last thing that he remembers…

...Remembers…

_ Why can’t I remember? _

Clive’s eyes widen. The last thing he remembered was saying bye to Jordan and Nicky, being taken to an airport, and leaving his home of New Jersey to attend the **[Harmonic Diversity Summit]**. Is this it? If so, why couldn’t Clive remember ever arriving, or getting situated, for that matter?

“And what does…**[New//Academic Life] **mean?”

Wanting answers, and not really thinking that sitting in here’s gonna get him any, Clive walks up to the door, and pulls on the handle. 

“Hnn...hnng!!”

The thing was sturdy: too sturdy for Clive to even _ begin _ opening it. His eyes drift over to the device to the right of the door.

_ Put my right hand palm-down in the hand scanner… _

Clive takes a breath, before entering his right hand into the slot provided in the device.

A few seconds pass, then more.

There is silence, before the device beeps.

“Aah!” Clive quickly redraws his hand, a burning sensation creeping from the back of his hand. He grits his teeth, staring.

Branded into the back of his hand with some kind of hot iron from the device, is the number **0**.

“Ow! Gah, what _ is _ this?!” Clive mutters through gritted teeth, and pain slowly slipping away from his hand. The whole thing had lasted only a few seconds, but Clive was still miffed at the sudden branding.

The door slides open in the middle of Clive’s grovelling, and he takes a step out into the hallway.

At the same time, directly across from Clive, a door with the number **7** painted onto its front slides open to reveal a large, _ intimidating _ figure. He is tall, sturdy, and built like a brick wall, with dark black hair cascading to his shoulders and a full beard. His immensely scary appearance is almost completely knocked aside by the fact that he wears a sweater-vest with little pictures of **[bumblebees]** on it. 

“Uh…” Bumblebee-man stares.

“Uh…” Clive stares back. “Hey! What’s up?”

Bumblebee steps out of his room, glancing around the hallway. On his side, a variety of other doors, **7-13** , can be seen lining the hallway, while on Clive’s side, it is doors **0-6** . Bumblebee looks back at Clive. “...I’m, terribly sorry.” He says in a deep, husky voice tinted with some sort of accent. “I know this may come across as... _ strange _ to you, but, I’m--”

“Not sure where I am?” Clive finishes his sentence. “Yeah, me too.”

Bumblebee immediately relaxes. “Oh, thank goodness. I thought I was going to sound like an insane person!” He breathes a sigh of relief, speaking in a surprisingly posh manner. “Tell me, did you too wake up in that room you just stepped out of, where all of your possessions lie?”

Clive smiles, despite the fact that this situation wasn’t one to smile at. He was just happy to find a kindred spirit. “Yes, exactly! You…” He looks Bumblebee over. “You were heading to the Harmonic Diversity Summit too, right?”

Bumblebee nods. “I was invited, yes, and I was on my way over when I…” He sighs. “I cannot remember what happened next.” His eyes suddenly widen. “Oh! I’m being very rude, my apologies, I haven’t even introduced myself!”

He straightens up, several feet taller than Clive. “My name is Victor Smirnov, and I am from New York! I graduated from Faith’s Point High as their valedictorian, as well as a peer leader, and just moments ago, I was branded with the number **7**.” He shows the back of his massive right hand, and sure enough, there’s a seven on it.

**====================**

**Victor - Number 7**

**Height: 6’8”**

**Weight: 298 lbs**

**Likes: Study Sessions**

**Dislikes: Loudmouths**

**====================**

“Wow, that’s...a lot.” Clive’s eyes widen slightly. “A lot more than me.”

“Nonsense.” Victor shakes his head. “To even be here, you have to be exceptional, like myself.”

_ He doesn’t have self-esteem issues… _

“Well,” Clive awkwardly chuckles. “I’m Clive Dudley, number **0**.” He flashes his right hand, which Victor stares at. “I’m from Jersey, and I graduated from Cherry Blossom High. I...didn’t really do any extracurriculars, but I got good grades, so, guess that’s why I’m here.”

**====================**

**Clive - Number 0**

**Height: 5’6”**

**Weight: 150 lbs**

**Likes: Driving**

**Dislikes: Pizza**

**====================**

“The life of extracurriculars is not for everybody.” Victor sighs. “Peer leadership was really only a fraction of what I did. I attempted to do everything, and…” He crosses his burly arms. “My personal life suffered.”  
  
“Oh no,” Clive frowns. “What happened to your personal life?”  
  
“I didn’t _ have _ one!” Victor says. “It was always studying, and work, and if it’s not studying or work, it was something else.” He shakes his head. “If you still managed to be the top of your class and not burnt out like me, then perhaps…” His head drops. “Perhaps you’re better than me.”

_ Oh, there’s the self-esteem issues. _

“Hey, buddy, no.” Clive tries to be reassuring. “I’m really impressed by you. We’re all here for a reason, and I think yours blows mine out of the water.”

Victor simply stares at Clive, slack-jawed.

“Uh,” Clive is caught off-guard. “What’s wrong?”

“What…” Victor stares right at Clive, into the man’s soul. “_ What did you just call me? _”

Clive shakes in terror. “...B-Buddy…?”

There is a long, terrible silence in which Clive can only begin to imagine the pain that is about to befall him for _ daring _ to refer to this hulking man as anything more informal than ‘sir’. 

Just as he winces, preparing for his bones to be crushed into a bundle of calcium sprinkles, Victor lunges forward, takes Clive’s hand, and shakes it like a really bad parent would shake a baby.

“W-Woah!” Clive’s eyes widen.

“_Thank you thank you thank you thank you!!! _ ” Victor’s face beams, stopping for a moment. “You called me _ buddy! _ Does that--does that mean that I’m your _ friend _now?!”

“Uh!” Clive has no idea what the hell is going on right now. “Y-Yeah!”

“That’s great! That is spectacular!” Victor resumes the shaking of Clive’s hand. “It has only been a matter of minutes, but I have earned my first friend!”

Clive’s eyes widen. _ His first friend? _ He wasn’t kidding, his personal life must be _ non-existent _! Clive sighs, feeling sorry for the man, before lightening up and smiling. “That’s right,” He says. “We’re friends now.”

Victor lets go of Clive’s hand, still smiling. “Oh, that was...that was very rude of me, I apologize.” He says. “I just...get excited easily.”

“That’s fine, man. Really.” Clive chuckles. “We’re friends now. How about we go find out what’s going on?”

“Sounds good.” Victor nods. “When I find whoever’s behind this…” His fists clench. “I’m going to write a very stern letter to them about why this kind of behavior is inappropriate!!”

“Yeah…” Clive smiles. “Me too.”

...


	3. [0] Brain Trust

“No use.” Clive shakes his head. “All of these numbered doors are locked, and don’t respond to our hands.”

“Nothing happens when I hit the doorbell, either.” Victor sighs. “I don’t think anybody’s in them, and, if they are, they’re very heavy sleepers.”

In total, there were fourteen doors, seven on each side of the wall, numbers painted on each and every one of them. The zero and seven doors opened for Clive and Victor respectively, and stayed open for about five seconds before automatically closing. 

“We should move on.” Clive says. “I think everybody else might already be out and about.”

“Mm.” Victor nods. “Let’s go.”

The two of them move on past the hallway of doors, and soon, come to a door on the right-hand side labelled  **[Dining Hall]** . 

“I’m gonna open this door.” Clive says, walking up to it.

“Go ahead.” Victor says. “You, don’t really have to announce that.”   
“Right.” Clive smiles bashfully as he opens the door, revealing a wide room with many circular tables and chairs around them. 

_ It’s just like a school cafeteria… _

Along the back wall is a smaller door, labelled  **[Kitchen]** .

Clive walks through the hall, weaving his way through tables and chairs (with Victor knocking a few over and making a racket on account of his larger frame), before heading through the kitchen door.

Stoves, ovens, microwaves, pots, pans, utensils, a large fridge and a walk-in freezer immediately present themselves to Clive as he walks in. 

“This place is fully-stocked…” Clive mutters as he opens the fridge, a myriad of foods that would’ve surely caught his eye if he were hungry right now. 

This doesn’t stop Victor, however, who reaches past Clive and grabs a ham from the fridge.

“Oh, are you gonna make, like, a sandwich?” Clive asks, looking behind him to see--

Victor is eating the entire ham.

_ That’s a lot. _

“That’s a lot.” Clive blurts out what he’s thinking.   
“I really like ham.” Victor shrugs.

Clive can’t help but smile as he closes the fridge and heads back into the dining hall, Victor following after him, having gotten through at least a third of this ham in the last minute. Clive was equal parts intimidated and impressed at this display.

Suddenly, outside of the dining hall entrance, Clive hears voices that causes him to freeze.

“Yeah, I think I heard it coming from here!” A woman’s voice calls out.

“Other people.” Victor quickly puts the ham on a table and sits down, trying to look as dignified as he possibly can with a half-eaten slab of ham directly in front of him.

Clive chuckles, and sits down next to Victor. Maybe it was finally time to get some answers.

Looking over at the entrance, he sees six figures hurrying into the dining hall, all of them seeming to be around the same age as himself. 

The first of which is a girl standing at about six feet, with delicately curled brown hair obscured partially by a  **[reggae] ** hat, sagging over the side of her head much like a raindrop. She smiles brightly, revealing her braced teeth to the world as both of her hands rest on the straps of her overall jeans. “Yep, there’s more people in here, guys!” She calls out behind her.

Entering right after her is a well-built boy, with dark skin and an even darker  **[pompadour]** jutting out in front of his head, looking almost like a swordfish threatening to skewer the girl in front of him. He lazily takes a piece of straw out of his mouth, looking much like a cowboy with his chaps and leather boots. 

_ This looks like the kind of guy that would shout ‘yee-haw!’ or great you with a ‘howdy, partners!’  _ Clive chuckled at the thought.

“Howdy, partners.” Pompadour nods his head at Clive and Victor.

_ Oh. _

“Er, howdy!” Clive waves, looking past Reggae and Pompadour, at the other arrivals.

The third to enter is a boy with wild hair, tanned skin, and wild eyes that Clive can’t help but find charming, like little excited emerald jewels. He wears an eye-catching  **[tie-dye] ** shirt, trackpants, and a variety of bracelets cover almost the entirety of his left arm. “ _ ¡Hola! _ ” He waves frantically at Clive, his face beaming as he quickly overtakes the two in front of him, rushing over to his table and taking a seat next to Victor. “How are you today?” He asks the larger man. “I mean, besides the waking-up-and-being-branded part of today!”

Victor chuckles softly. “I’m well.”

“That is good!” Tie-Dye playfully punches Victor on the shoulder. “You’re big! That’s a lot of ham! I want to be your friend!”

“R-Really?!” Victor’s eyes widen.

As Victor makes his second friend ever, Clive looks back at the entrance, and he suddenly starts to feel a lot more awkward as he sees the next girl enter. He focuses primarily on her face, not wanting his eyes to drift down to her rather... _ revealing _ outfit, consisting of a low-cut t-shirt/jacket combo, with a skirt and leggings, which, for the record, does  _ wonders _ for her figure.

Clive mentally smacks himself in the head.  _ Don’t be gross. _

Aside from  _ that _ , the woman’s left eye is covered by a long, sweeping  **[bang]** .  _ Wait, I shouldn’t use the word ‘bang’, that’s not--I mean, I’m talking about hair, but, y’know, different connotations of the word  _ ** _[bang]_ ** _ can--I don’t wanna sound weird, this is a perfectly respectable young woman, I just-- _

“What’s wrong, see something you like?~” The  **[perfectly respectable young woman]** looks at Clive with a teasing smile.

Clive makes a sound like a buck that’s just been run over by a car.

The Perfectly Respectable Young Woman giggles, sitting down next to him, Reggae, and Pompadour. “I’m just joshin’ you around, man. Everybody here’s so  _ tense,  _ gotta lighten it up somehow.”

“H-Haha…” Clive awkwardly laughs, trying to turn away slightly to shield his red face from view. He focuses his attention fully on the last arrival, who seems to be the exact  _ opposite _ of the previous one. He--She-- _ They _ wear a  **[hoodie]** that seems to be several sizes too big for them, completely concealing their figure, not to mention their hands, the sleeves of their hoodie just flopping about with every tiny half-step. Black, kinky hair sprawls across their face, just barely giving Clive a peek at timid, slightly terrified eyes.

“Hey, buddy, c’mon over here!” Clive calls out to Hoodie, receiving a surprised yelp in response, Hoodie clearly not anticipating being singled out. They hesitate for a moment, before nervously scuttling over to a seat away from everybody. 

All together, Clive looks over the group, seven in total, including himself. All eighteen years old, more or less, and all dressed rather... _ eccentrically _ , at least, in comparison to himself. 

“So,” Victor pats his large hands on the table, gathering everybody’s attention as they all sit down. “Hello. From what my newest friend here has told me,” He gestures to Tie-Dye. “You’re all in the same position that we’re in.”

“If you mean waking up in a room that isn’t ours, and having to be branded like cattle to get out, then yeah.” Pompadour nods his head grimly. “We’re in the same boat.”

“We all met out in the hallway, and started looking around.” Reggae says. “We came over here because we heard a lot of knocking around.” 

Victor looks over at the various chairs that he capsized getting to the kitchen. “Er,” He looks embarrassed. “My apologies.”

“I’m really confused.” Reggae continues. “I was supposed to be at a  **[Harmonic Diversity Summit]** , and--”

“The Diversity Summit?” The Perfectly Respectable Young--oh, that’s too much, let’s just go with  **[bang]** for now-- _ Bang _ asks, with a raised eyebrow. “In Vermont? That’s where I was heading.”

“Me too!” Tie-Dye raises his hand.

“Same for Clive and myself here.” Victor motions to Clive, nodding. “From what I’ve gathered, that’s what we all have in common here.”

“The last thing I remember is the plane ride over, and then...nothing.” Clive says. From the looks on the faces of all the others, the story was familiar to all of them. “But, if that’s the case, then...maybe this  _ is _ the summit!”

“Maybe so,” Pompadour leans back in his chair. “But why don’t any of us remember arriving here?”

“Maybe we all just drank too much the first night, and we all got trashed as  _ fuck! _ ” Bang pipes up, a thoughtful expression on her face contrasting with the tone of her comment.

“W-What?!” Reggae’s eyes widen. “But, we’re all too young to drink!”

“As if that’s stopped anybody.~” Bang giggles. “Just think: a remote winter estate up on one of the most secluded mountains in the United States, no teachers, no parents...we could’ve done  _ anything  _ our first night!”

“I...don’t think that’s the case.” Clive chuckles. “But, in any case, if we’re all supposed to be at the summit, I think it’d be for the best if we got to know each other. Y’know, isn’t that the point of the summit in the first place?”

“That’s true.” Pompadour eyes Clive. “So then, how about you start, stranger? Or, as I’ve gathered from the big guy there, your name’s  _ Clive. _ ”

Without hesitation, Clive held out his right hand, displaying the number branded onto the back of it.

“Yep, I’m Clive.” Clive turns his hand around and waves. “And I’ve got the number  **0 ** on my hand. Not really sure what that means, though…”

“And I’m Victor.” The man starts right where Clive finished, flashing his own right palm. “Faith’s Point High, peer leader, all that stuff. I’ll keep introductions brief this time, haha. I’m number  **7** .”

“I guess we are just going around the table, then.” Tie-Dye practically bounces in his seat in excitement. “Hello! Greetings! Salutations!  _ Me llamo  _ Samuel, but please call me Sammy! I like to run, make art, and be branded with number  **5** ’s! That, er,  _ is _ the right number?”

**====================**

**Sammy - Number 5**

**Height: 5’9”**

**Weight: 125 lbs**

**Likes: Graffiti **

**Dislikes: Firearms**

**====================**

  
  


“Mm.” Reggae nods. “That’s a five, and if you just subtract one, you’ve got a  **4** .” She flashes the number branded on her hand. “I’m Naomi, and I want to major in liberal arts.”

“Which liberal arts?” Victor asks.

“Yes.” Naomi nods with a smirk. “I’m not sure where I want to spend my focus. Acting and directing’s a big thing, but, I do a lot of writing, reading, singing, composing, a little bit of everything. I guess you could call me a melting pot of art.”

Hoodie looks up slightly at this, but quickly turns away again.

**====================**

**Naomi - Number 4**

**Height: 6’0”**

**Weight: 196 lbs**

**Likes: Spotlight**

**Dislikes: Quitters**

**====================**

“Not exactly an artsy guy, myself.” Pompadour leans back so far in his chair that Clive fears that he may fall. He puts the straw back in-between his teeth. “Name’s Logan. I don’t know what’s the deal with us wakin’ up in these rooms and puttin’ numbers on our hands--” He flashes his right hand, the number  **2** visible. “But I intend to get to the bottom of it.”

**====================**

**Logan - Number 2**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 195 lbs**

**Likes: Animals**

**Dislikes: Modern Technology**

**====================**

  
  


“Somebody’s daring.~” Bang leans back in her chair as well, although not nearly to the extent of Logan. “As for me, I’m content to just enjoy this while I can. You lot can call me Kelly, or, if you’d prefer something a bit more  _ numerical _ \--” She flashes a backwards peace sign, revealing her branded number. “--Number  **6** works just as well.”

**====================**

**Kelly - Number 6**

**Height: 5’8”**

**Weight: 146 lbs**

**Likes: Company**

**Dislikes: Wind**

**====================**

“That just leaves…” Clive looks over at Hoodie, sitting a short distance away. “Hey, buddy, I like your hoodie.”

Hoodie looks up slowly. “...y-you do?”

“Yeah, the purple and black’s a cool color scheme.” Clive smiles warmly. “What’s up?”

Hoodie stuffs both of their hands (pretty much entirely sleeves at this point) into their pockets. “...i don’t know where i am, and, i’m getting pretty scared, but, you want me to...introduce myself, r-right?”

“Only if you’re comfortable with that.” Victor says, eyeing the proportionally-smaller figure.

“Nobody’s forcing you to talk, dear.” Kelly says, bending forward to pat Hoodie’s shoulder with her hand. Clive looks up immediately as this happens, not wanting to see anything he shouldn’t from Kelly’s top.

“Although, you must be very smart to be here!” Sammy grins. 

“That’s true.” Naomi laughs softly. “We’re kinda like a brain trust here, huh?”

“...u-um…” Hoodie hesitates momentarily, before speaking. “my name is...jamie. they gave me the number  **1** ...and, i, um...like to draw…”

“Really?!” Naomi’s face brightens up. “Oh, you have  _ gotta _ show me later!”

“...maybe.” Jamie looks down at the ground, clearly embarrassed at the sudden attention on them. 

**====================**

**Jamie - Number 1**

**Height: 5’1”**

**Weight: 134 lbs**

**Likes: Horror**

**Dislikes: Social Interaction**

**====================**

This attention is broken, however, by the sounds of something  _ shattering _ right outside the door.

“Huh?” Clive’s head whips towards the door. “What was that?”

“Only one way to find out, partner.” Logan rises to his feet, making a brisk walk towards the door. “C’mon.”

“Ooh! It could be more people!” Sammy gets up and sprints over, quickly overtaking Logan on his jog to the door.

“Or another mystery.” Victor mutters to himself as he stands, taking the ham with him. The rest of the brain trust rises to their feet not too long after, heading over to the door and exiting the dining hall, looking towards the direction of the shattering.

What they saw was…

Clive isn’t sure how to describe it as anything other than sheer chaos.


	4. [0] White Noise

“Bitch!” The girl with flaming **[red]** hair with golden tips yells out as they lunge forwards. “You stupid _ bitch! _”

The short blonde girl wearing a **[leather]** jacket and a backwards baseball cap swiftly maneuvers out of the way, launching a kick at Red’s kneecap, causing Red to let out a cry of pain and fall to her knees. 

“Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it.” Leather crosses her arms, staring at the downed Red.

“Why you--” Red gets to her feet to continue her charge, but is held back by a boy significantly more muscular than her, with dark skin, a shaved head, and what appears to be **[soldier]** garb, complete with twinkling dog-tags next to a cross around his neck. 

“In-fighting is not going to solve anything!” Soldier says as he holds Red back, reminding Clive of a video he once saw of a man wrestling a wild tiger. 

Logan raises his eyebrow. “Just what in the hell is goin’ on here?”

Stepping in front of the brain trust is another girl, her appearance causing Clive to do a double-take. If the Soldier’s outfit was weird, then this girl was..._ something else. _ She wears a _ superhero _ costume, complete with a domino mask, a cape, and a large **[Earth]** logo on her chest. 

“Oh, _ geez _, those girls…” Earth sighs, placing both of her hands on her hips. “The blonde said something smart about the redhead, and that led to a slap, which led to--” She motions towards a painting of a bear, which seems to have been hanging on the wall, but now lies on the ground, its frame smashed. “--litter! The cruelty to mother Earth! Siiiigh…”

_ Did she just say ‘sigh’ out-loud? _

“Talk shit, get hit!” Red yells out, still restrained by Soldier but not struggling as much anymore.

“You should know something about talking shit.” Leather mutters under her breath. “That’s what everything you spew’s made out of.”

“What did you say?!”

“Guys, _ guys, _” Naomi raises her hands. “We don’t need to be fighting right now, let’s all just calm down.”

Red opens her mouth to say something, before her eyes glaze over the crowd of disapproving faces. She looks at Jamie, who seems to be shivering in fear over the violence, and she just scoffs and turns away. “Whatever. I’m fine. You can let me go, meathead.”

“Don’t do that again.” Soldier warns as he releases Red. He then turns to Earth, saluting. “The situation has been resolved, ma’am!”

“Ma’am?” Kelly looks over at Earth, raising an eyebrow. “...What are you doing?”  
Earth kneels down over the fallen painting, carefully picking up pieces of broken glass with her hands and depositing them in a pouch strapped to her thigh. “I am reducing the waste of this world! The only things on the ground should be things that are _ meant _to be on the ground, such as dirt, bugs, and feet!”

Clive looks the four newcomers over, before relaxing. “You guys woke up here too, right? On your way to the Harmonic Diversity Summit?”

“We figured that much out.” Leather says, arms still crossed. Clive glances at her for a moment, reminded of his sister, Jordan. Of course, Jordan was taller, and also not a blonde, and also a lot nicer, but the leather jacket and style--”The hell you looking at?”

Clive immediately looks away. “N-Nothing!”

Victor frowns, not liking this attitude. “Who are you guys? We all got introduced in the dining hall.”

“Allow me to introduce myself too, then!” Earth suddenly rises to her feet, debris cleared from the floor. “I am the protector of this planet! I am the enemy to litterbugs everywhere! I am Environmental-Woman!”

There are blank stares all around, except for Clive, who smiles widely.

_ That’s so cool! _

“...B-But,” Earth coughs, embarrassed. “You can call me Erin, if you like. They gave me the number **11** when I left my room.” 

**====================**

**Erin - Number 11**

**Height: 5’10”**

**Weight: 185 lbs**

**Likes: Community Service**

**Dislikes: Lazy People**

**====================**

“So, you’re a superhero!” Clive looks her costume over. It’s clearly homemade, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t look _ really cool _.

“Clive, she’s not an _ actual _ superhero.” Kelly notes. “Even _ if _ the costume’s pretty cute…”

“That’s where you’re wrong!” Erin dramatically points. “I mean, the first thing you said, you are right about my costume being super cute! Superpowers only exist in comic books and movies, so in the real world, the actual superheroes can be anyone! Policemen, firefighters--these are all superheroes, and doing your part and collecting litter makes you a superhero too!”

“She is right! Everybody can do their part to make the world a better place!” Soldier says, standing firm and steady. “As for myself, I serve my planet as ROTC, and I plan to go into the Air Force! My name is Tyler McKenzie--” He lifts his hand up. “--And I have been designated **12**!”

**====================**

**Tyler - Number 12**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 203 lbs**

**Likes: Sweets**

**Dislikes: Disrespect**

**====================**

Clive grins, saluting at Tyler. “Nice to meet’cha. You too, Erin.” He then looks at Red. “...Hey. You doing okay?”

Red rolls her eyes. “Yeah, whatever. I guess you want me to introduce myself too, huh?”

“That’d be appreciated.” Naomi says. “...We’re all trying to get our bearings, here.”

“Well then, it’d be my pleasure!” Red stands up tall, putting one hand on her hip and motioning to herself with her other hand, drawing attention to her modified school uniform with a skirt that’s maybe a _ little _ too small. “I’ve got number **8** , and as for my name, if you don’t _ know it already _, I’m Hott! That’s spelled H-O-Double T! You can follow me on any and all forms of social media, like, comment, subscribe, worship, you know the jist.”

Victor blinks. “...That’s your name? _ Hott? _”

“Wait! That’s her screen-name!” Kelly gasps. “I know you, you’re HottMess, that internet icon!”

“Haha!” Hott grins widely. “That’d be right! I’m glad at least _ somebody _ here recognizes my fame!”

“Internet icon? What’s that mean?” Logan asks, a very evident expression of confusion on his face.

“It means she whores herself on camera for views.” Leather says nonchalantly.

“I’m gonna kill you!!” Hott’s about to lunge forwards again, but a very stern stare from Tyler causes her to stop in her tracks. “..._ Eventually. _” She grumbles. 

**====================**

**Hott - Number 8**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 192**

**Likes: Trends**

**Dislikes: Corporations**

**====================**

“Stop provoking her, all you’re doing is winding her up.” Tyler says to Leather.

“Yeah!” Erin nods her head, pointing at Leather. “You should be nicer!”

“Whatever,” Leather rolls her eyes. “Just because I got invited to this dump too doesn’t mean that I have to be all lovey-dovey with you all. Especially not with getting branded and jumbled around with no idea what’s going on.”

“You could at least tell us your name.” Clive says gently. “Just...as a gesture.”

Leather thinks for a moment, before shrugging. “You can call me _ Q-Ball. _”

Victor’s eyes widen. “You’re using a, _ screen-name _ too?”

Leather chuckles. “Nah, I’m just kidding. I’m not that much of a skank to use a fake name.”

Hott roars beneath gritted teeth. 

Leather cracks her head. “Quinn. That’s my name.”

“Quinn…” Clive mutters to himself.

“Don’t wear it out, button-up.” Quinn says. “Also, the bastards in charge of this place gave me this.”

She raises her hand, which the crowd leans forward to look at. It is the number **9**, and immediately after the crowd gets close enough to see it, she raises her middle finger in an incredibly rude gesture.

**====================**

**Quinn - Number 9**

**Height: 4’10”**

**Weight: 90 lbs**

**Likes: Poetry**

**Dislikes: Authority Figures**

**====================**

_ What an unpleasant girl… _

After Quinn’s less-than-friendly greeting, the rest of the group from the dining hall introduce themselves to the newcomers, and just as they get Jamie to work up the nerve to offer a greeting, a blast of white noise erupts from..._ somewhere _.

“What _ is _ that?” Sammy looks around, frowning at the noise.

“ugh…” Jamie covers their ears. “can someone please...make it stop…”

“I think…” Naomi looks up. “It’s an intercom?”

Naomi’s observation turns out to be correct, when seconds later, a voice calls out to everybody in the hallway, no doubt coming from a variety of speakers littered around the area. The voice is that of a peppy female, but something seems _ off _ about it, like it’s just a bunch of noises _ pretending _ to be a person’s voice.

“**One, two, three, A-B-C! Is this thing on?**”

“Who the hell…” Hott’s eyes narrow.

“Ssh!” Naomi quickly places a finger over Hott’s mouth.

“**Allow me to welcome you to the Harmonic Diversity Summit!** ” The intercom voice continues. “ **Listen, I get it, you’re all a bit confused, hey, why wouldn’t you be? If I were in your shoes, I’d be baffled too! I’d be like, why am I wearing other people’s shoes?!**”

A laugh-track plays over the intercom.

“**Thank you, thank you. I’ll be here all night, and if you wanna see me, come on down to the [Entrance Hall!] Trust me, I’m gonna explain everything to you guys! Now, peace out, and see you soon, babes!**”

There’s silence for several moments in the hallway.

“...Somebody thinks they’re funny.” Logan mutters.

“I thought it was pretty funny.” Kelly chuckles.

“She said to go to the Entrance Hall.” Tyler says. “That was further down this way, right?” He points in the direction away from the hallway with the numbered doors.

“Yeah, I saw a sign somewhere.” Erin says, swishing her cape. “Let us be off, then!”

“Right!” Clive nods. “C’mon, guys!”

He heads out, Erin and Tyler at his heels, and the rest following behind not too long after. Maybe now, they’d finally find out what all this business about their memory, and numbers, and the **[New//Academic Life]** was about.

It was time for the future to become a whole lot bleaker for everybody within the confines of the Anderson Estate.

…

The entrance hall was at the front of the building that the eleven graduates found themselves in, and it seemed to stretch out for miles, a roaring fireplace along the west wall, and--

“Look!” Victor points directly in front of the group. “There’s more people!”

Two figures were standing in front of the double-doors that presumably opened up to the outside. The first of which was a short girl, eyes completely hidden by large, circular spectacles, with a completely bald head halfheartedly covered up by a blue **[beret]**. 

Beret grins as the eleven graduates enter. “Fresh meat!” She calls out.

The boy next to her eyes the party with narrow, cautious eyes, although his eyes were the _ least _ interesting thing about him. He has jet-black hair with various streaks of white running through it, almost like a skunk, Clive thought. He looked like a scarecrow, tall and dangerously skinny, nothing but **[bones]**. 

“Hey!” Logan calls out to the two. “Are you two the jokers that made that announcement?”

“W-What?!” Bones’ eyes widen, his face sweating and his hand clutching over his chest like he's having a heart attack. “No! Of course not!”

"Woah, buddy, are you alright?" Clive asks, concerned.

"Y-Yes! I am perfectly fine!" Bones takes a step back.

_ For someone saying he's perfectly fine, he sure does seem frazzled... _

“Oh, ignore him!” Beret says, waving at the new arrivals who begin to file into the Entrance Hall. “Look at all of you! So colorful! So..._ eccentric _ !”   
“You don’t seem to be phased at all by all of this…” Kelly mutters.

“Of course not! Why would I be?” Beret giggles. “I forget things all the time! And the **3** on my hand--” She gestures with her hand. “--That’s just cool, like a tattoo! Y’know, three is the minimum number of people needed in a group for majorities and minorities to form! It’s also the number of letters in my name: Amy!” She waves with the same hand as she chatters. “Pleased to meet ya's!”

**====================**

**Amy - Number 3**

**Height: 5’0”**

**Weight: 125 lbs**

**Likes: Secrets**

**Dislikes: Meat**

**====================**

_ She seems way too chipper about this whole thing, but...there’s nothing wrong with keeping a light attitude, I guess! _

“Hm. I’ll i-introduce myself as well, then.” Bones bows. “My b-bad for panicking earlier, I’m not g-good with large, sudden groups. My n-name is Wolfgang von Weber, aspiring m-medical student.” He flashes the back of his hand. “I am number **10**.”

**====================**

**Wolfgang - Number 10**

**Height: 6’1”**

**Weight: 99 lbs**

**Likes: Loud Noises**

**Dislikes: Pressure**

**====================**

“Yep, we’re both going into the medical field!” Amy claps both of her hands together. “I guess it was just fate that we woke up first and met each other!”

“A-Although your interests are more psychological...” Wolfgang mutters. “I m-mainly study in neurological and muscular--”

“We got it, you’re both doctor people.” Quinn interrupts, stepping forwards towards the two. “So you two woke up first. Why didn’t you wake anybody else up?”

“We didn’t want to interrupt your beauty rest!” Amy says. “I know that I wouldn’t want anybody to wake me up while _ I _ was sleeping on that comfy bed!”

“_ Comfy? _” Clive’s eyes widen.

“Comfier than hay.” Logan shrugs.

_ Where do these people sleep…? _

Just as Clive contemplates how anybody could find that monster with a mattress on it comfy, his thoughts are interrupted by more white noise from the intercom. 

“There it is again!” Victor calls out, covering his ears.

“ow ow ow…” Jamie whimpers.

“**Ladies, gentlemen, and those that don’t identify as either!** ” The voice sounds throughout the area again. “ **It looks like you’re all together, so it’s time for the summit to start! Please, put your hands together for your loveable mascot character…**”

A beam of light shoots down from the ceiling, causing Clive and several other graduates to jump back. The light smashes down onto the floor, before bouncing off of the floor like a basketball, molding itself into a hovering orb of light. The light slowly begins to outstretch, before forming a shape: the silhouette of a person. 

“**_Nia!_ **”


	5. [0] Nia

The light fades as the details of the figure becomes clear. Clive’s jaw _ drops _, like a killer beat. 

Clive was never really a fan of those Japanese animes, but he was familiar enough with its art style to know that this..._ person, _ was _ not _ a person. Her eyes were way too large, her skin too perfect, her every feature exaggerated, an hourglass figure that seemed to radiate color, pastel hues weaving and pulsating off of her clothes much like how a Hibachi chef juggles and flings food. 

Was Hibachi Japanese? Clive was fairly certain it was.

The anime woman stands with her arms crossed, a smug grin on her face as her long pink hair flutters in the nonexistent breeze, the tips of her hair seeming to morph into cherry blossom petals, fluttering around her. Her eyes shine, vibrant Mandelbrot rainbows swimming inside of them, and written on her collar is something familiar to Clive: **N//A**.

“What the hell?!” Logan eyes the new arrival, on high-alert.

“H-Huh?” Naomi stares on in disbelief. 

“Uh…” Clive can barely get any words out of his mouth.

“**Oh come on, can’t I get a good reception on my first appearance?** ” The woman, _ Nia _ , sighs. “**I know, I ** ** _know_ ** **, you wanna stare at me for a while, but really, come on! You guys should be more excited!**”

“Are you some sort of...hologram, perhaps?” Victor raises his voice after a long pause.

“**Well, yes ** ** _and_ ** ** no!** ” Nia giggles. “**Right now, yes, you’re looking at a hologram, but I’m so much more than the body you see before me! My name is Nia, and I am the Harmonic Diversity Summit’s AI!**”

“_ Artificial Intelligence? _” Naomi does a double-take.

“**That’s right!** ” Nia nods. “ **You’re observant, I like you! I’m an Artifical Intelligence that was developed to help you adjust to your New//Academic Life!**”

“Bullshit.” Quinn rolls her eyes. “I knew it, this is a gimmick.”

“A gimmick?” Tyler looks over.

“Yeah, for once, I agree with Goldilocks, here.” Hott nods. “The people running the summit are making up some kinda storyline with a virtual host gimmick. Honestly, I think it’s pretty cool.” She looks Nia over. “That hologram’s cutting-edge tech…”

“**Right back at ya, Hott stuff!**” Nia shoots Hott a finger-gun.

“Oh! So then, this is all planned?” Clive breathes a sigh of relief. “I was starting to get worried…”

Erin strikes a triumphant pose. “I concur! I thought we were in a sticky situation for a bit, but if this is all kayfabe, then I’ll be happy to participate!”

“It’s a cute little story, I’ll give them that.” Kelly chuckles. “I don’t exactly _ appreciate _ being thrown into it against my will, but…”

“But everything’s okay!” Amy grins ear-to-ear. “See, I don’t know why all you worry-warts were worrying up a storm! Especially you, Wolfy!”  
“I-I…” Wolfgang still seems to be sweating excessively, looking away from Nia.

“**Oh? Somebody seems to be nervous!** ” Nia giggles again, looking at Wolfgang, before turning her attention to the rest of the gang. “**But, you’re all being silly! This isn’t some ** ** _storyline_ ** **, I’m an actual AI, running on code and a buttload of numbers!**”

“Yeah, sure.” Quinn glares at the holographic woman. “You’re probably just some chick in another room wearing a VR outfit and prancing around.”

“I keep telling you to stop being rude!” Tyler says. “Especially not to someone running the summit!”

“..._ Are _you running the summit?” Clive looks over at Nia.

Nia smirks, her face unrealistically contorting as she does so, making Clive feel uncomfortable. “**Oh, yeah, of course! Well, ever since the old guys...left the picture.**”

“Left...the picture?” Clive tilts his head.

“**I was just getting to that, number zero!** ” Nia gestures towards the graduates dramatically. “**Now then, is everybody ready to officially begin the New//Academic Life here at the summit?**”

There are a lot of murmurs of agreement among the crowd, mostly filled with relieved people glad that everything was, seemingly, going according to plan.

“**Alright, then!** ” Nia points up at the ceiling. “**Hello world, and welcome to the N//A Game!**”

A clicking noise emanates from the ceiling as the graduates look up. A ceiling tile splits open, and something begins to fall.

All Clive sees is a bundle of shapes, tethered to the ceiling. All he hears is a deafening scream, and then, harsher than any sound that he’s ever heard before in his life, a sickening _ crack _. All that he feels is his blood running cold.

It all happens in the span of a couple seconds. The faces of the graduates go from confusion, then surprise, and, after a few seconds, quickly morph into shock, revulsion, and finally, _ terror _.

Clive’s face goes pale as he takes an instinctive step back.

A body hangs from the ceiling.

It’s a woman. Her head is twisted at an unnatural angle, the noose tied around her breaking her neck in an instant. Her eyes are cold and stare off into nothing, her tongue hanging out of her mouth like a slab of meat, a visceral slug oozing out of a mouth stained with blood and lipstick.

She sways, a beautiful woman, a hideous corpse, with kinky hair tied up in buns and a red dress, as red as her bloodied raw hands, palms scraped down to the muscles and fingernails snapped off, cutting into her flesh as well as the noose.

The world begins to grow fuzzy as Clive barely registers the reactions around him. Jamie vomiting onto the floor, Logan freezing up, Amy’s wide grin fading completely, Naomi’s gasp, Sammy’s scream of terror, Kelly’s eyes widening, Victor’s sounds of panicked anguish, Hott’s covering of her eyes, Quinn’s fists clenching, Wolfgang’s teeth grinding down to the gums, Erin’s stunned silence, and Tyler’s reflexive move to shield the majority of the graduates from staring at the corpse with his own body. 

Everything grows cold.

Clive grows cold.

_ Am I dreaming? _

Tears begin to form as he feels his knees weaken below him.

_ Please...be dreaming… _

“What the _ FUCK?! _ ” Quinn is the first to speak up. “What the fuck is _ wrong with you?! _”

“Is that, oh my god, is that real?!” Sammy begins to hyperventilate. 

“It’s not real, it’s not real…” Amy repeats to herself, like the mantra of a madwoman. “It’s not real, it’s not real…”

“**Oh, it’s real!** ” Nia’s crooked, inhuman grin remains on her face. “**Cut her down yourself if you want to prove it! Graduates, I present to you, Baby Doll, queen of the College Cradle!**”

“She’s…” Hott takes a step forward, before quickly shielding her eyes again. “Oh, holy fuck, is she--”

“C-Cut her down.” Wolfgang demands through gritted teeth. “Somebody. _ Now. _”

“Okay, okay!” Kelly snaps out of her daze, reaching down and pulling up her pant leg, revealing a holster for what seems to be a hunting knife. She draws it, before running over to the body.  
“It’s just a...mannequin.” Victor says to himself. “That’s what this is. Yeah...”

Clive’s eyes glaze over Victor, wishing that he could believe him. 

Kelly stands on her tip-toes, reaching up with her knife, and with careful, practiced movements--

“Watch out!” Logan calls out.

“Ah!” Kelly yelps, jumping backwards as the body falls to the floor with a _ crunch _, crumpling over. “I-It’s down!”

Wolfgang walks over, kneeling down and examining the body.

“Hey!” Victor calls out. “What is it? It’s fake, right? A mannequin?”

Wolfgang grimaces. “...This...is a r-real body.” 

Victor stares in stunned silence. “...What…?”

“**Really, you’re all so stupid. Of ** ** _course_ ** ** it’s a real body, why would I lie to you?**” Nia groans.

“What the _ fuck _ is going on here?!” Quinn yells, louder this time.

“What have you _ done?! _” Erin matches her volume, staring at the holographic woman, enraged.

“**Baby Doll here is dead, just as you all could end up soon.** ” Nia sighs. “**Because you see, graduates, here at the Harmonic Diversity Summit, we aren’t going to be making lasting friendships or contributing to the community. No no ** ** _no_ ** **, dear children. Here, we are going to play the [N//A Game].”**

“...New//Academic…” Clive mumbles out, still in a state of shock.

“**Right you are, number zero!** ” Nia smiles. “**To put it short, there’s no way that any of you will be leaving. By all means, go outside and look! All of the means of getting off of this mountain have been destroyed, all lines of communication with the outside world are severed, and everybody besides you all have been taken care of!**”

“Taken...care of…?” Amy asks, horrified.

“**Everybody's gone, number three! ** **For this next month, you're all alone, and none of you are going ** ** _anywhere_ ** **.** ” Nia says. “**You’re all playing the game, and the game ** ** _doesn’t want you to leave_ ** **.**”

“You keep talking about a _ game _.” Logan asks, stepping forwards. “What’s the game, just abandon us here on the mountain until we starve to death?”

“**Oh, of course not!** ” Nia shakes her head. “**Well, I mean, yes ** ** _and_ ** ** no. You ** ** _will_ ** ** starve to death within a month, I haven’t packed nearly enough food for fourteen young adults to last an entire month. That’s the problem with organics, you’re all so needy!**”

“Shut the fuck up!” Quinn goes to march towards Nia, before being stopped by Tyler. 

“Let her speak.” Tyler says, his face grim. He turns to Nia. “Okay. Let’s assume that this isn’t a drill, and that everything that you say is true. What do you want us to do instead of starve here?”

“**That’s easy.** ” Nia claps her hands together like an excited child. “**I want you to kill each other!**” 

Silence. 

Nothing but deathly, shell-shocked silence.

“...what?” Jamie sobs.

“**The only way that you can escape this mountain!** ” Nia explains. “**If one of you can manage to kill another one of the graduates here, you and you alone will be able to safely make it back to civilization, your families, and your futures, no strings attached!**” 

“You’re insane.” Hott’s eyes widen.

“No shit.” Quinn’s face is pale.

“This...can’t be serious.” Victor shakes his head. “People will know we’re up here! Help _ will _ come!”

“**If that’s the risk you wanna take, be my guest!** ” Nia says. “**What’ll come first, I wonder? Help arriving, or succumbing to frostbite and starvation?** ” She shrugs. “ **Honestly, I’d love to see! Although, one of you will probably give into temptation and off somebody before we can see that play out!**”

“...You’re wrong.” Clive speaks up.

Nia raises an eyebrow. “**Huh?**”

“You’re wrong that somebody will kill.” Clive finally stands up tall. “You’re just...trying to scare us, with the body, and the threats...I don’t know what your plan is here, I don't know what you are, or what any of this is supposed to mean, but…” He clenches his fists. “But you’re wrong if you think we’d do that!”

There is a period of silence. 

“**...Ha…**”

Clive flinches.

“**Ha...haha...HAHAHAHAHA!!** ” Nia doubles over laughing. “**How heroic! How ** ** _brave,_ ** ** number zero! I’m not gonna lie, it’s pretty inspiring to see! I can’t ** ** _wait _ ** **to see your resolve slowly crack until there’s nothing left of you!**”

“He’s right!” Victor stands next to Clive. “If you believe us to be _ murderers… _”

“Then you’re underestimating us!” Erin finishes his sentence, completely breaking free of her fear. “We’re stronger than you think, right, guys?”

Erin looks around at the others, at all the stunned, frightened, and broken high school graduates.

“...Right, guys…?” Erin repeats, her voice weakening. 

“**It doesn’t seem like everybody agrees with your assessment.**” Nia flashes a satisfied smile. “**I’ll be off now, I want this killing game to stew up inside of you all, but be sure to meet me outside at the fire pit at sundown so that I can explain more of the rules!**”

Nia waves. “**Until we meet again, babes. Remember, make smart choices, and have a good N//A Day!**”

A flash of light envelops her, before fading away entirely, leaving nothing in the room except thirteen utterly despaired people and a corpse. Nobody wants to say anything for the longest time, most of them wishing that they could just wake up from the nightmare that they’ve found themselves in.

Clive opens his mouth to speak, to say _ something _ that’ll bring his peers back to reality, but somebody clears their throat behind him. He slowly turns around.

Standing in the doorway, observing the entire scene, is an incredibly tall and muscular woman, dark-skinned, with a shaved head and piercing amber eyes. She reaches inside of her high-class suit, the number **[13]** clearly visible on her right palm, and she speaks.

“So, all we have to do is kill each other.” Thirteen makes a smile completely devoid of emotion. “Interesting. That seems simple enough.”

Out of her suit, she draws a revolver, before pointing it straight at the group, straight at _Clive._

“In that case, who would like to die first?”


	6. Intermission: Report Cards

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A handy collection of cast report cards.

**====================**

**Clive - Number 0**

**Height: 5’6”**

**Weight: 150 lbs**

**Likes: Driving**

**Dislikes: Pizza**

**====================**

**Jamie - Number 1**

**Height: 5’1”**

**Weight: 134 lbs**

**Likes: Horror**

**Dislikes: Social Interaction**

**====================**

**Logan - Number 2**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 195 lbs**

**Likes: Animals**

**Dislikes: Modern Technology**

**====================**

**Amy - Number 3**

**Height: 5’0”**

**Weight: 125 lbs**

**Likes: Secrets**

**Dislikes: Meat**

**====================**

**Naomi - Number 4**

**Height: 6’0”**

**Weight: 196 lbs**

**Likes: Spotlight**

**Dislikes: Quitters**

**====================**

**Sammy - Number 5**

**Height: 5’9”**

**Weight: 125 lbs**

**Likes: Graffiti **

**Dislikes: Firearms**

**====================**

**Kelly - Number 6**

**Height: 5’8”**

**Weight: 146 lbs**

**Likes: Company**

**Dislikes: Wind**

**====================**

**Victor - Number 7**

**Height: 6’8”**

**Weight: 298 lbs**

**Likes: Study Sessions**

**Dislikes: Loudmouths**

**====================**

**Hott - Number 8**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 192**

**Likes: Trends**

**Dislikes: Corporations**

**====================**

**Quinn - Number 9**

**Height: 4’10”**

**Weight: 90 lbs**

**Likes: Poetry**

**Dislikes: Authority Figures**

**====================**

**Wolfgang - Number 10**

**Height: 6’1”**

**Weight: 99 lbs**

**Likes: Loud Noises**

**Dislikes: Pressure**

**====================**

**Erin - Number 11**

**Height: 5’10”**

**Weight: 185 lbs**

**Likes: Community Service**

**Dislikes: Lazy People**

**====================**

**Tyler - Number 12**

**Height: 5’11”**

**Weight: 203 lbs**

**Likes: Sweets**

**Dislikes: Disrespect**

**====================**

**??? - Number 13**

**Height: 6'3" **

**Weight: 186 lbs**

**Likes: Electricity**

**Dislikes: Stains**

**====================**


End file.
